His swaggering image as he walked around Chhatrapati Shivaji terminus was captured by Mumbai Mirror photo editor Sebastian DSouza, and was the first glimpse of the terrorists who have held Mumbai hostage over the last 48 hours.

Now we can also tell you who this man is and how he has become the vital link for investigating agencies to crack the terror plot. His name is Azam Amir Kasav, he is 21 years old, speaks fluent English, hails from tehsil Gipalpura in Faridkot in Pakistan, and is the only terrorist from this audacious operation to have been captured alive.An ATS spokesperson confirmed that the man captured was indeed the one photographed by us.

On the night of Wednesday-Thursday, Azam and his colleague opened fire at CST before creating havoc at Metro and then moving on to Girgaum Chowpatty in a stolen Skoda, and where they were intercepted by a team from the Gamdevi police station. Azam shot dead assistant police inspector Tukaram Umbale.

But in that encounter, Azams colleague was killed and he himself was injured in the hand. He pretended to be dead giving rise to the news that two terrorists had been killed. However, as the bodies were being taken to Nair Hospital, the accompanying cops, figured that one of the men was breathing.

According to sources, the casualty ward of Nair hospital was evacuated and the Anti-Terror Squad moved in to interrogate him. Azam who was tightlipped initially, cracked upon seeing the mutilated body of his colleague and pleaded with the medical staff at Nair to save his life. I do not want to die, he reportedly said. Please put me on saline.

Ammunition, a satellite phone and a layout plan of CST was recovered from him. According to sources, the young terrorist has given the investigators vital leads including how the chief planner of the Mumbai terror plot had come to the city a month ago, took pictures and filmed strategic locations and trained their group and instructed them to kill till the last breath. Every man was given six to seven magazines with fifty bullets each, eight hand grenades per terrorist with one AK-57, an automatic loading revolver and a supply of dry fruits.

Azam reportedly disclosed that the group left Karachi in one boat and upon reaching Gujarat they hoisted a white flag on their boat and were intercepted by two officers of the coast guard near Porbandar and while they were being questioned, one of the terrorists grappled with one of the officers, slit his throat and threw the body in the boat. The other officer was told to help the group reach Mumbai. When they were four nautical miles away from Mumbai, there were three speedboats waiting for them where the other coastguard officer was killed. All the ammo was then shifted into these three speedboats. They reached Colaba jetty on Wednesday night and the ten men broke up into groups of two each. Four of these men went to the Taj Mahal hotel, two of them to the Trident hotel, two towards Nariman Point at Colaba and two of which Azam was one, moved to CST.

Azam, who was Nair hospital for nearly four hours, was taken away by the intelligence agencies in the early hours of Thursday to an unknown location after the hospital authorities had removed the bullet from his hand and declared that his condition was stable.

But it seems the police grilling was so intense that before he left the hospital for an undisclosed location, he pleaded with the police and the medical staff to kill him. Now, I dont want to live, he said.

If you poke around the Mumbai Mirror web site you'll find photographer Sebastian DSouza's unbelievably compelling account of what he experience at Victoria Terminus. First he took pictures of the terrorists, then they shot at him, then he helped a trainload of communters to escape unharmed, then he went back with the police and was shot at *again*, then one of the policement who'd judt told him to take cover was shot standing right next to him (condition unknown).

As for Mr. Azam Amir Kasav, nothing is too severe to punish him for his murderous actions.

He wanted to live,eh? Well,if India is still a country that adheres to any degree to standards of civilized people some police/prison guard will stick an icepick in the back of this 9th Century knuckledragger's neck and,if questioned,will say that Ahmed tripped and fell.

*Azam, who was Nair hospital for nearly four hours, was taken away by the intelligence agencies in the early hours of Thursday to an unknown location after the hospital authorities had removed the bullet from his hand and declared that his condition was stable.

But it seems the police grilling was so intense that before he left the hospital for an undisclosed location, he pleaded with the police and the medical staff to kill him. Now, I dont want to live, he said.*

Gosh, I hope they don’t do anything inhumane to him, like the Americans do at Gitmo. I mean, they need to follow the Geneva Convention and all that.

But it seems the police grilling was so intense that before he left the hospital for an undisclosed location, he pleaded with the police and the medical staff to kill him. Now, I dont want to live, he said.

I'm sure the India intelligence services put a pair of panties on his head.

Actually it could be that he is pleading to die, not because of the torture as such, but because he has lost his “honor,” having told the interrogators everything he knows and betrayed his masters and his religion.

I thought earlier accounts said that there were several prisoners. But I suppose in such chaos false reports are likely.

"I do not want to die, he reportedly said. Please put me on saline.

What, this guy [is] a doctor also?

The exact same sentence which caught my attention, as well. But I'm not wondering about whether this terrorist has a medical background or not. I'm amused (in a grim way) that he is, after all, such a panty-waist. ("Oh, and please elevate my legs - my injured hand is hurting!")

But it seems the police grilling was so intense that before he left the hospital for an undisclosed location, he pleaded with the police and the medical staff to kill him. Now, I dont want to live, he said.

But it seems the police grilling was so intense that before he left the hospital for an undisclosed location, he pleaded with the police and the medical staff to kill him. Now, I dont want to live, he said.

No, no, no, no. Obama is still only holding the newly created "Office of President Elect"

Bushiltler is still in office, the Zen like Zombie change that the world will experience will only happen after he takes the oath as well has the oceans stop raising and the planet healed by his mere presence

You need to understand that Obama is a "lightworker", an "attuned being", "agent of change" and the one "hope" for the world.

But it seems the police grilling was so intense that before he left the hospital for an undisclosed location, he pleaded with the police and the medical staff to kill him. Now, I dont want to live, he said.

Ten jihadis on meth did all this according to the news. Very Chilling!! Without any overreaction, governments in target countries have to prepare. Stop searching 80 yo grannies and start profiling likely assassins.

My only offer would be this: You’re gonna die either way. Tell us everything you know and we’ll kill you and bury you. Give us any reason to think you’re lying and we feed your remains to a pack of wild dogs - and do do on TV.

Or else, instead of blowing up ALL the mosques, return them to use as the Christian churches, Hindu temples, and every other groups’ worship buildings they used to be before the koranimals invaded and massacred most of the original inhabitants and forced the survivors to become muslim over the past 1400 years.

We are talking about two different guys. The terrorist said he wanted to live...I'm sure every innocent that was killed felt the same.

As for the photographer I agree. I would like to reserve my opinion about his report of the police though. He though they could get them...maybe...but they may have had orders for a different plan...I don't know. I don't want to bad mouth these men who fought and some died to end this though. People see situations differently, sometimes. Time will tell.

"Whats the official position of the Indian Government on water-boarding? And what do they REALLY do?"

I may be wrong, but the Hindu method of waterboarding is different. They actually tie the prep to a board then then hold him under water for about five minuites. When the five minuites are up they plug in a toaster and toss it into the tub the prep is in. Saddly though, they have been un able to get any information from the terrorists. They are trying to find out whats wrong with their waterboard.

50
posted on 11/29/2008 11:32:06 AM PST
by skimask
(Never argue with an idiot, they will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience)

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